Even as some of California's top elected officials promised they won't support or enforce a recent court decision severely restricting most homeschooling, a small Christian school vowed to take the fight to the state Supreme Court to get a legal guarantee.

An attorney for Sunland Christian School, based in the Los Angeles County community of Sylmar, said he will file a motion this week to get that ball rolling.

The Feb. 28 ruling out of the state's Second District Court of Appeal stemmed from a child welfare dispute involving two children who were enrolled in independent study at Sunland, which has about 400 homeschooled kids.

While the private school wasn't a direct party in the case, the ruling said the kind of arrangement between Sunland and its families didn't adhere to state education laws, said Kevin Snider, chief counsel for the Pacific Justice Institute and the school's lead attorney in the appeal.

"Sunland was basically ground zero for what's going on in that case," Snider said. "Our client clearly has an interest in having its voice heard."

The Southern California appellate court ruled that California law requires parents to send their children to full-time public or private schools or have them taught by credentialed tutors at home. Homeschooling advocates fear the ruling could open the door to enforcement of California's truancy laws against students and parents.

Homeschooling takes many forms - some families are affiliated with independent study programs at private or charter schools, while others register their homes as a private school with the state Department of Education and enroll only their own children.

Homeschool advocates and lawyers said the ruling appeared to affect all forms.

The case raises what some see as a conflict between a parent's right to determine how their children are educated versus the state's interest in an educated populace and enforcement of that through compulsory education laws.

On Tuesday, state Superintendent of Public Instruction Jack O'Connell said the state's current policy allowing families to homeschool would continue despite the ruling.

"Every child in our state has a legal right to get an education, and I want every child to get an education that will prepare them for success in college and the world of work in the challenging global economy," he said in a statement.

He said he hoped every family would choose a public school to do that, but acknowledged not all have or would.

"Parents still have the right to homeschool in our state," O'Connell said, adding that he based his opinion on legal advice from state lawyers.

The statement surprised homeschool advocates.

"I haven't seen a government official have this kind of defiance - and I don't mean that in a bad way - challenging a court directly since desegregation days," Snider said.

On Friday, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called the ruling outrageous, saying if the courts didn't overturn the ruling, elected officials would legislatively change the laws.

Despite those promises, Sunland's owner and operator, Terry Neven, said those good intentions won't hold up if someone decides to use the precedent of the recent ruling in court.

"It needs to be taken care of," Neven said. "It needs to be dealt with."